Nyte Time
by Shadow Mage Evelyn
Summary: When a mysterious masked woman appears in East City and selects Edward for her latest experiment, how will Edward survive the next terror filled hours of his life?
1. Chapter 1

**NYTE TIME**

**A Fullmetal Alchemist Fanfiction**

By Shadow Mage Evelyn

A.N. - Hey guess what? I'm alive! This is a random thought that just wouldn't leave me alone, so I decided to give it birth. Hope this is better than my last fic, _Conviction of Character_.

Read and Review, please!

ONE

Moonlight glazed over the rooftops of East City, coating everything in a blanket of pale, milky light. Every now and again, three figures could be seen darting to and fro amongst the roofs. They traced ragged, zig-zag lines across the city, skimming along from roof to roof in such a way that the people below on the streets were offered nothing more than mere glimpses of shadows against the moonlit sky. Such curiosities were merely brushed off with gentle shaking of heads or rubbing of eyes, the apparitions there and gone again so quickly that many just chalked it up to runaway imagination or tired eyes.

Up above, a much different story was playing out. Of the three figures, there was a distinctly feminine figure swathed in form fitting black clothes in the lead. Her ensemble was further covered in sheer black fabric that streamed out behind her like a pair of translucent wings. She dodged and rolled, her high-heeled boots scarcely making but an occasional clicking noise as they touched down every so often on the concrete roofing. Her face was obscured by a black mask with an intricate red swirling pattern on it, and further curtained by her long dark hair. Her hands were all but non-existent in the long sleeves of her garment, which dropped down in narrow cylinders to somewhere below her knees. She hardly appeared exhausted or out of breath, skimming from roof to roof with silent ease, very much the creature of the night she appeared to be.

Behind her pursued two figures of unequal sizes and dissimilar appearances. One was a seven-foot suit of armor with a plain loincloth draped around its waist. Two glowing orbs of red light peered out from the eyelets of the helm, and hollow clank-clanking noises could be heard as each metal foot touched down. Beside this bizarre figure ran a small young boy barely 16 years of age with blond hair fastened behind him in a braid and a coat of brilliant scarlet flying out behind him like the wings of a bloody hawk. He was breathing heavily with exertion, but from the set of his jaw and the look in his tawny golden eyes, it was evident that he had no plans to slow down until he'd caught the woman ahead of him and his companion.

These two figures were known far and wide as Edward and Alphonse Elric. They were brothers, and the eldest, Edward was better known as the Fullmetal Alchemist, the youngest State Alchemist tied to the military command of Amestris. He'd passed the State Alchemy Exam at the tender age of 12 to pursue one goal; find the legendary amplifier of all alchemy, the Philosopher's Stone.

Many alchemists had pursued the fabled gem for reasons of glory or wealth, but Edward and his younger brother had other reasons for wanting the Stone. A year before taking the State Alchemy Exam, Edward and his brother had attempted a forbidden alchemic ritual known as Human Transmutation. Their attempts had failed horribly, leaving Alphonse as a soul attached to a seven-foot suit of armor and Edward with two missing limbs; limbs which had quickly been replaced by automail within a year.

Unfortunately for Edward, being a State Alchemist meant he was nothing more than a tool to their whims, and when the time came and he was called upon to complete a mission, he had no choice but to obey.

Which explained how he and Alphonse had landed themselves in the situation they were in right now.

"Get back here!" Edward yelled at the fleeing back in annoyance.

The woman before him was a criminal known simply as "Nyte" by all reports. She'd showed up in East City a few weeks ago, terrorizing the civilians and burglarizing private properties and banks. Colonel Roy Mustang, the Flame Alchemist and the commanding officer of East City—and incidentally Edward's assigned CO—had issued a simple and curt command to his young protégé: "Capture her by any means necessary".

It turned out that Nyte was not an easy lady to pin down. It had taken the Elrics the better part of a week to even get a whiff as to her whereabouts, but they'd gotten a lucky break and had tracked down a rumor that she was planning to strike one of the National Banks in the city for a second time. Edward and Alphonse had laid a trap for her, but she'd managed to evade that through means still unclear. Which was exactly why Edward and Alphonse were now in hot pursuit of her.

"Dammit! Where's the backup that the Colonel promised?" Edward griped as he hurtled another ledge to the next roof.

He was beginning to feel a stitch forming in his side and growled it away.

"I'm sure they're on their way," Alphonse replied calmly. With a body that did not get tired, Alphonse could easily keep the pace. Edward threw him a sarcastic look and then gestured to the left with his chin.

"You go that way. See if you can cut her off. I'll keep on her here."

"Right!"

Without another word, Alphonse took off to the left, disappearing off the edge of the roof to the street below. Gritting his teeth in annoyance, Edward picked up the pace to try and close the distance between himself and his target, who wasn't showing any signs of slowing down.

After this dogged game of cat and mouse continued for another few minutes, Edward decided he'd had enough. He clapped his hands together and, instantly, blue-white sparks of alchemic energy danced around his hands as he touched them to the concrete roof beneath his feet, deforming the material to create a series of walls that prevented Nyte from going forward or to the right. She paused a moment with a curious click of her heeled boots and turned to look at him. Huffing and puffing, Edward flashed his trademark grin at her, but was unable to detect any emotion through the white material covering the eyelets of her full face mask.

"I'm glad you finally stopped," Edward said. "The chase was getting boring."

If his opponent was unnerved at this confrontation, she didn't show it in her body language. Her stance was easy, arms hanging loose at her sides, the wind stirring her long sleeves and sheer drapery eerily around her body. Undeterred, Edward pointed at her.

"Alright, who are you? What's your purpose here?"

For a moment, the woman didn't respond. Edward ground his teeth and balled his hands into fists, getting ready to strike, when her voice suddenly floated towards him.

"I am called Nyte."

Edward scoffed and rolled his eyes.

"I know _that_! I meant your real name!"

"What you see before you is the apparition named Nyte. That is my real name. I have no others."

Edward growled.

"Give it a break, lady. This cloak and dagger crap has gone on long enough. You're caught now, and one way or another, I'm going to find out who you really are."

"You haven't captured me yet, little alchemist, just merely delayed me. However, if you think you can beat me then come at me."

Edward stared hard at her. She gave him no indication of what she was thinking, but it was clear to him from everything he'd seen of the way she moved so far that she was not to be underestimated. She was quick and silent as a cat, and with that mask on, it would be hard to pick up any tells she might give and predict her moves. Her stance was easy but not over-confident, meaning she knew what she was doing, but knew, too, that Edward was not to be underestimated either. Edward eyed the sheer cloth and her long sleeves again with a measure of trepidation. He was sure the drapery was for more than show; it no doubt acted as a means of confusing her opponents. And there was no telling what she had hidden up those sleeves. He'd have to be cautious.

He settled into a defensive stance, movements easy and sure. She was going to be tough, sure, but he was positive he could beat her, and sometimes, it was all about attitude. He darted forward suddenly, charging right at her and taking a swing with his left hand. Predictably, she dodged, fabric floating past Edward, distracting him momentarily as she launched a kick at his face. He just barely managed to dodge in enough time. He grimaced. He'd known it. All that cloth was going to be a real pain in his ass.

He and Nyte traded a few more cautious blows, getting a feel for one another's moves. Edward found all the fluttering cloth to be a very annoying distraction and after another close call involving a stiletto heel coming very dangerously close to his left eye, he'd decided he'd had enough of playing it safe. With an easy back flip, Edward clapped his hands and transmuted the faceplate of his automail arm into his favored blade.

Nyte's head tilted slightly left in curiosity.

"No transmutation circle?" she asked.

"That's right," Edward retorted with a grin. "So there's nothing to slow me down from kicking your ass."

"Hmm," the woman replied. "So you really do deserve the title of State Alchemist. Interesting."

"Less talking and more ass kicking!" he taunted, stepping forward and swinging his arm, cutting through the air with his armblade.

The woman hopped back out of the way, and Edward pursued, driving her further and further back towards the stone walls behind her. She danced around him lightly, and if Edward's blade concerned her, she was doing an awfully good job at concealing her unease. Edward silently cursed that mask again. He had no idea what she was planning and could only hope that his continued barrage would keep her on the defensive long enough for Alphonse to reappear.

When the steel tip of her boot dug into his solar plexus, Edward wasn't sure how much longer he could keep this up. Gagging harshly, he fell to one knee, putting his left hand against the injury while keeping his right arm before him defensively to fend off any other forthcoming attacks. She landed a one-two kick on his arm, knocking it aside before spinning on the ball of her foot and smashing the heel of her foot into the side of Edward's temple, sending him sprawling. He curled up and rolled away, trying to get out of her range.

Nyte started after him, but had to change direction quite suddenly when the ground beneath her suddenly started to warp and large spikes shot up at her. With graceful ease, she leapt far away from the danger, back-flipping in midair and coming to land easily on her feet a few meters to the left of her original position. She turned to see Alphonse Elric help his brother to his feet before the two settled back into their defensive stances.

"Ah," she said. "I was wondering when you'd show up."

Edward could sense his younger brother's grin.

"That's right," Alphonse replied, the grin in his voice. "We're a team, so if you mess with one, you mess with us both."

Nyte shrugged nonchalantly.

"One or two of you, it matters very little to me."

Edward was getting very tired of that attitude.

Without a word, he charged forward at the woman again, swinging his arm blade at her. Predictably, Nyte dodged, but as she leaped, she produced one of the many silk ribbons floating about her body and wrapped it around Edward's flesh forearm in a motion too quick to follow. As she landed, she pulled the ribbon, forcing his arm behind his back. Letting out a yelp, Edward followed the motion, allowing the arm to crumble under the pressure. Reflexively, he swung back at her with his armblade, but found only resistance as the sharp edge came into contact with the ribbon. Edward stared at it in bewilderment.

"Surprised?" she asked in his ear. "I've been fighting many years longer than you and have faced many opponents who wielded blades. Did you really think I wouldn't think to reinforce the ribbon with a steel wire hem?"

With sharp, blindingly fast motions, Edward soon found his metal arm twisted behind his back as well and tied into place beside his left wrist.

"Hey!" he protested.

Nyte shoved him aside in enough time to meet Alphonse's approaching attack. As he jabbed a fist at her, she spun around, grabbing his wrist as it moved past her and flipping the whole suit of armor over her shoulder, flinging him to the ground with a loud crash. Edward and Alphonse stared at her in shock. The only other person who could do that was Izumi Curtis, their alchemy teacher.

"Hmmm," Nyte said. She tapped Alphonse's chest with a steel-tipped boot. "You're hollow inside."

Her head swiveled so she could look at Edward.

"You're quite an interesting pair."

"Like we haven't heard _that _before," Edward replied gruffly, kicking his legs as he wriggled his hands against his bonds. He rolled onto his back and swept his leg at her ankles, trying, at least, to feel slightly less ineffectual against the woman. The most he succeeded at was getting her away from Alphonse, who rose to his feet and quickly untied the ribbon around his brother's wrist. They turned once more face the thoroughly unpredictable woman.

"Al," Edward said in that meaningful tone that only his brother would understand.

"Yeah," Alphonse agreed.

She was holding back for some reason.

Knowing that really bothered Edward. She wasn't even fighting him full on and he was having a really tough time against her! However, he reassured himself, fighting down the brief fit of panic, the most she had done was evade their attacks and find some way to disable them. She wasn't going to get far playing all defense. She'd eventually have to launch an attack, but he had no way of knowing what kind of attack she would make or when. He already knew she was fast, strong, and agile.

He grimaced. This was not going to be fun.

No sooner had the thought occurred to him than the woman launched herself, the only warning the sudden click-click of her heeled boots before she darted forward and landed a 1-2-3 kick to the bottom, middle, and top portions of Alphonse's chest-plate. Alphonse went flying backwards, rolling and tumbling to play out his momentum and nearly falling off the roof if not for the sharp protrusions from his elbow plates. He screeched to a stop and bumped into the ledge.

"Alphonse!" Edward cried.

He moved to run to his brother's side and regroup, but suddenly Nyte appeared before him, blocking the way. Her right hand suddenly materialized from within the folds of her sleeve, a very sharp dagger in hand, and she began to stab and slice at Edward, forcing him back onto his heels. It was all he could do to keep his automail arm up before him and block her attacks. She paused momentarily, and Edward thought he saw his chance. He took a tiny step backwards before leaning forward suddenly, bringing his arm in a wide horizontal slice. He cut nothing more than air as his target leaped and flipped straight up over his head to touch down lightly behind him. Before he could turn, her right arm slipped around his neck while her left hand grabbed his braid, locking him in place and forcing him to tilt his head backwards. Alphonse, too, was likewise immobilized by the dagger Nyte held tight against Edward's now vulnerable throat.

Edward growled.

"What the hell do you want?" he asked through his snarl, glaring at her from the corners of his eyes.

"You intrigue me," she said quietly. "You're barely more than a boy, but you've done more in the last 3 years than most men will do in a lifetime. By all accounts, you're brave, hot-headed, and smart. And it's evident to me that you think quickly on your feet."

"Get to the point!" Edward rasped, tugging at her arm.

She tightened her hold, pulling hard on his hair and pressing the sharp edge to his throat warningly, causing his breath to hitch in his throat cautiously. He gritted his teeth again.

"Mmm, yes," she said a moment later. "I think you'll do nicely."

Her left hand released his braid and vanished into her sleeve again. Edward couldn't see what she was doing until suddenly her hand appeared holding a syringe.

"How would you like to take part in my little experiment?"

Edward knew that being in the clutches of crazy women in masks holding syringes was a very bad situation to be in. Not to mention the fact that she was still holding a syringe full of some kind of chemical, the effects of which he had no way to predict but could venture a wild guess and say most likely not good. Frantically, he struggled against her hold, not caring whether or not she slit his throat. She started loosen her grip and he was finally able to slip free, but the moment he turned to face her, she plunged the syringe needle right into the junction of his neck and jaw line with clinical precision, nailing him right in the main artery and pressing the syringe's plunger viciously with her thumb. Edward cried out and pulled back, but it was too late. She'd succeeded and the chemical was in him. He stumbled back and grabbed for his neck, staring at her while panting heavily. He felt no different, but he didn't know how long before whatever she'd just pumped into his system took effect. Alphonse, meanwhile, had come up behind his brother and now had his hands on Edward's shoulders, a reassuring presence against Edward's back.

"What was that?" the younger Elric cried. "What did you do to him?"

Nyte shrugged noncommittally, but before she could answer, a gout of flame suddenly belched across the roof at her from the left, forcing her to leap and dodge out of the way. Alphonse and Edward snapped their gazes to the left to see Colonel Roy Mustang on the roof across the way, his fingers poised to snap and his trademark smirk on his face.

"Good job, boys. We can take it from here."

"Colonel!" Alphonse cried. "Be careful! She did something to Ed and we don't know what it'll do!"

Roy's lips tightened and the corners of his mouth dropped into a frown.

"What do you mean?"

"She injected me with something," Edward replied. He was feeling just a little bit hazy and his heart skipped a beat in panic. He looked over at Nyte who had not stirred since she'd dodged Mustang's flames.

"We don't know what it is," the young alchemist said. "Or what it will do."

Roy turned his stare to the masked woman.

"Explain yourself!" he commanded.

"All will be revealed in a few short hours," the woman replied. Suddenly she lifted her left hand and held up a vile of a bluish-green liquid.

"This is the antidote."

"A poison?" Roy replied. The woman shook her hand.

"Not a poison, merely an experimental drug that needs testing."

Roy glared.

"If you think for one second I'm letting you walk out of here without handing over that antidote, you're mistaken."

"I will administer the antidote once I've gathered sufficient data," the woman replied coolly. "And not before."

"So he's your guinea pig?"

"You're all my guinea pigs. The whole world is my laboratory."

"You're insane," breathed First Lieutenant Riza Hawkeye from her position behind Roy. Despite her nervous tone, her aim never wavered. Nyte tilted her head.

"Perhaps," she said. "But when you see what my experiments are capable of, you'll be begging me to come to work for your government."

Before anyone could say anything else, Nyte's arm flashed too quickly to follow, throwing down a smoke globe. The Elric's coughed and Roy growled.

"Lieutenant?" he asked.

"No good, sir," she replied. "Cloud's too thick."

In a few moments, the smoke cleared and everyone looked at Edward in concern. For his part, he looked appropriately terrified.

He had no idea what was going to happen next.


	2. Chapter 2

TWO

"Anything?"

Doctor Porter sighed and shook his head. He turned from the microscope to look at Colonel Mustang.

"Whatever she pumped into him, it's completely foreign to me. I've never seen a chemical compound this complex before."

Roy grimaced. Sitting on the stool next to him, Edward swallowed hard and shifted nervously. Across the room by the door, Alphonse and Riza exchanged concerned looks.

"So what do we do now?" Edward asked timidly, looking up at his superior officer. Roy looked at Porter.

"What do you suggest, Doctor?"

The man sighed, running a hand through his salt-and-pepper hair. He looked up and met Edward's fear-laced gaze.

"I think at this point, the best thing to do is to keep you here under observation. That way, in case anything goes bad, we can be there to monitor it. However," he said, turning to look at Roy, "the sooner you can find that woman and get your hands on the antidote, the better. We have no idea what this drug is capable of or what it's going to do to Fullmetal."

Roy and Edward nodded simultaneously.

"No choice, then," Edward said softly, his hands tightening into fists on his thighs.

Doctor Porter's gaze softened.

"Don't worry," the man assured him. "We'll do our best to keep the worst from happening…whatever that may be."

Edward swallowed again and nodded.

A kind nurse with short brown hair and a name tag labeling her "Nicole" showed Edward down the hall to a small room with a narrow window, a sink, a tiny bathroom, and a bed. The bed, Edward couldn't help but notice, had restraints built in. He tried to beat down the panicked, trapped feeling in his chest and reminded himself that he was among people whom he could trust. The nurse handed him a set of hospital clothes and he took them tentatively.

"I'm sorry, but circumstances what they are, we can't take any chances," she told him in a gentle voice.

He nodded.

"I understand."

She stepped out so he could change and when he was finished, she returned and gathered up his belongings.

"Sorry," she said with an apologetic shrug.

He shook his head.

"Really. It's okay. Until we know what this drug's going to do to me, take every precaution you have to."

"I know," the woman said. "You just have that look on your face."

Edward looked at her curiously.

"What look?"

"That scared, 'prisoner of war' look. It makes me feel bad doing this to you, especially since none of this is your fault."

Edward gave her a rueful smile.

"Well, I appreciate it. I know it's got to be done, though, so don't feel bad. And I'll work on my face so I don't make that look when you're around, okay?"

She laughed lightly.

"Alright," she said, and then moved out of the room.

Alone, Edward turned to one of the blank walls of the room and took a series of deep breaths, clenching and unclenching his fists and trying his hardest to get rid of the anxious feeling squirming around in his gut. He was badly unnerved by the lack of control he had in this situation. He had no idea what the woman's chemical was going to do to him, and he didn't like that. He didn't like that there was something in ihis/ibody that he had no control over. He didn't like feeling like a prisoner in his own skin.

He stared hard at the wall in front of him and continued to take long, deep breaths.

The wall stared back.

Edward's eyes widened.

_The wall was staring back._

Alphonse opened the door to his brother's room at the same time that Edward, face locked in an expression of terror, started backing away quickly from the wall in front of him, running back straight into the bed behind him and stumbling, tripping up as the bed shifted, its wheels not locked in place. Alphonse rushed to Edward's side, trying to catch him, but he fell backwards to the floor, landing on his rear end and clutching to the bed. He stared in wide eyed terror at the wall in front of him.

"Brother?" Alphonse asked, crouching down next to his brother and putting a hand on his shoulder. "What's wrong?"

Edward squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head before looking back up at the wall. The eyes were gone.

"I…" he said. Alphonse stared at him in concern.

"I thought the wall was staring at me," he finally said in a confused voice.

Alphonse didn't know how to respond.

"You…what?"

Edward looked just as bewildered as Alphonse felt.

"The wall had eyes just before. Right there."

He pointed at the blank space of wall he'd been staring at before. Alphonse looked over but saw nothing.

"Brother...there's nothing there..."

It was a long time before either of them moved.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

The next few hours passed between the Elrics in nervous, tense silence. Edward's mood became increasingly more agitated. He paced back and forth across his small room restlessly, staring blankly at the floor and muttering something over and over to himself. Alphonse watched him with growing concern, noticing the wild, half-animal look in his brother's eyes. He felt as if Edward wasn't all together there; as if he only half aware of his actions as he continued to move back and forth across the floor. Alphonse said nothing, though, and the only sound for awhile was the slap-thunk of Edward's feet. Finally, after about a half an hour of this, Alphonse spoke.

"Um…maybe you should lie down, Brother."

His older brother froze mid-step in alarm before he reminded himself of where he was and who it was that voice belonged to. He turned to Alphonse and sighed.

"Yeah…you're probably right."

He turned towards the bed, only to find four vipers laying there in coils, waiting to strike at him, two on each side of the mattress. With a choked gasp, he hopped back, crashing against Alphonse, who stumbled a bit and caught him.

"Brother? What is it?"

"Don't you see them, Al?"

"See _what_, Brother? Nothing is there!"

Edward blinked and suddenly, where the vipers had been, there were only the bed restraints. He blinked a few more times, confusedly, before turning to Alphonse.

"But…there were just snakes there…"

Alphonse stared down at his brother in concern.

"Brother…are you sure you're okay?"

Edward looked down at the floor for a second, and then looked up at his younger brother.

"I…don't know, Alphonse. I don't feel right."

"What do you mean?"

Edward's eyes darted nervously around the room.

"I…I keep thinking that I'm seeing and hearing things that aren't really there. Indistinct voices. Glimpses of shadows. And occasionally…eyes will appear at random places. Objects will change shape and become really frightening things, like the snakes I thought I just saw."

He stared up at Alphonse with a sort of haunted expression.

"I'm thinking I'm going nuts," he whispered in a harsh voice, as if afraid that saying it any louder would make it true.

Alphonse found himself at a loss for an explanation. He rubbed his metal head.

"…maybe some sleep will help?" he offered. "You might just be a little edgy because of what happened today."

Edward stared sightlessly at the bed, telling himself that the eyes staring back at him from the pillows were not really there.

"…you're probably right," he replied cautiously a few moments later, leaving _at least, I hope you're right_ unspoken.

He stood nervously at the bedside for a long moment, squeezing his eyes shut until the eyes peering back at him went away, and then he tore the blankets back from the mattress, breathing a sigh of relief when he didn't see anything lurking there. He climbed in and lay back on the mattress, pulling the covers all the way up to his chin. He looked around nervously. For some reason, he suddenly didn't feel very safe at all, despite his brother being only a foot away.

"Get some sleep, Brother," Alphonse said. "You'll probably need it."

Edward nodded and closed his eyes. Alphonse waited until he had settled into a restless slumber before getting up and moving out of the room. His brother's behavior was very concerning. He had to tell one of the nurses.

So preoccupied with his own thoughts, he didn't notice the dark haired woman in the nurse's uniform who walked past him and slipped into Edward's room with a mysterious smile.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

_Wake up…_

Edward sat up suddenly in bed. He looked around the room and found no one around. He blinked his eyes blearily for a moment, totally confused as to what it was that had woken him up. Where the heck was he? He couldn't remember. He swung his legs out from under the blankets, his flesh foot touching cool tile, his metal one making a gentle clink against it, and cautiously rose to his feet. He could hear something outside the door to the room, but couldn't quite place the sounds. Was someone talking? He didn't know.

He cautiously made his way over to the door, tentatively grasping the knob with his automail hand, the quiet tink-tink of chrome fingers tapping brass sounding like it was coming from a great distance. He felt like someone had stuffed his ears with cotton and covered his eyes with film. Everything was blanketed in a warm, yellowish haze. The room kept warping on him and he swayed a little. He shook his head slightly, grasping the knob tightly as he struggled to steady himself. With another shake, he gritted his teeth and tried to dig in to reality.

He failed.

Nevermind, he told himself. The more important thing right now was figuring out where he was and how he'd gotten there, and he wasn't going to do that just sitting in here. He opened the door and looked out. Before him lay an empty hallway tinged yellow in the dingy light. Everything looked grungy and unfamiliar to him. He felt his heart skip a beat. Where in the world was he? And where was Alphonse? He took a cautious step forward into the hall and looked around, the door closing with a creak behind him. He shied away from it like a nervous colt and then looked up and down the hallway.

No one.

He tried to ignore the hazy, shadowy shapes he thought he saw moving out of the corners of his eyes.

"Hello?" he said timidly into the quiet. Something wasn't right. He felt unsettled and scared. Where was everyone?

"Hello," he called again. "Is anyone here?"

Hazy, indistinct voices floated back towards him from a long ways down the hall. He started towards them, walking slowly, cautiously.

"If someone's there, can you tell me where I am?"

More vague voices. He felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise. He didn't like this place. He didn't like it one bit. Where was Alphonse? Where was anyone? He didn't want to be here. He needed to get out. Now.

He heard the voices again.

"Please," he pleaded at them. "Can you just tell me where I am so I can get home?"

A door up a ways from where he stood opened on the left hand side of the hall, and a shadow fell across the dingy tile. Edward held his breath and waited, but the shadow didn't move.

"Can you help me? I don't know where I am and I need to get home."

The shadow moved, suddenly, a figure coming out into the hallway. It was hard to make out in the dim, shadowy lighting of the hall. Edward stepped closer.

"Hey! Can you hear me? Please! I really need your…"

He stopped dead in his tracks, the words catching in his throat as the figure turned to him and he found himself face to face with a massive, malformed, and disjointed creature with inhuman, twisted facial features and soulless red orbs for eyes peering down at him.

Edward went cold.

What in God's name was it? He'd never seen such a horrible thing before in his life! His body started screaming at him to flee, but he couldn't move. He couldn't move! _Oh God, why couldn't he move?_

The figure lurched into motion just then. It lumbered towards him with uneven, limping steps, one foot dragging across the tile, the eerie shuffling noise filling the empty hallway with its echo. Edward stood watching this in horror, unable to move, unable to scream, unable to breathe. The creature left a trail of thick, black sludge in its wake as it continued towards him. A gurgled, ugly noise erupted from somewhere inside it; it sounded curious but Edward couldn't make out what it said. He wasn't fluent in monster. His legs twitched and suddenly he was reeling back from it; backing away, trying to put distance between himself and it.

It's twisted, bent arms lifted then and its gnarled, misshapen fingers stretched out towards him. One hand brushed his face, fingers seeking his left eye. He jerked back with a startled gasp and wheeled, turning to run the other way, a scream for help bubbling up into his throat and tears beginning to form in his eyes.

There were five more creatures waiting for him.

And, suddenly, there was nowhere left to run.

He finally let loose his terrified scream as they closed in on him.

"_Help!" _he shrieked at the top of his lungs, backing away from the creatures and looking around frantically for some means of escape. "_Someone! Anyone! Please, help me!"_

The tall one burbled something at him again. The other five creatures burbled back, their bent and twisted hands reaching for him, trying to pull him towards them. He evaded their grip for as long as he could until he was up against a wall and could go no more. He clapped his hands, trying desperately to make a weapon or something when the tall one gargled frantically and the other five pounced on him. He screamed as he went down under their weight, fighting wildly, kicking and punching and trying whatever he could to cause some damage to them. One of them grasped his face between their horrible leathery hands, emitting a bright light from its mouth into his eyes. He jerked his head away.

"_No!" _he shrieked. "_No! Let me go! Don't touch me! DON'T TOUCH ME!"_

He sobbed uncontrollably, thrashing around as the one grasping at his head continued to try to put that strange light into his eyes. He squeezed his eyes shut against it.

"_NO! STOP! Alphonse! Someone! Please! Help me!"_

No one was coming to his rescue.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Roy's voice cut through the commotion sharply.

"What is going on?" he demanded loudly.

Directly before him stood Alphonse, his metal hands worrying each other nervously as he stood there, and before the fourteen year old knelt Doctor Porter and four nurses, each doing their best to hold down the flailing limbs of a wild, hysterically howling Edward Elric.

"That's what I would like to know!" Porter responded through gritted teeth, trying his best to hold Edward's head in place as he tried to shine a flashlight in the boy's eyes, but the teen twisted his head away for the third time and let out another blood-curdling scream.

"NO!" Edward shouted, struggling against the holds on his arms. "GET AWAY! Alphonse! _ALPHONSE!"_

Alphonse turned away, unable to watch his brother cry so frenziedly.

"You could at least help me hold his head!" Porter snarled at Roy, who stood frozen in shock at the whole thing.

At the sound of the doctor's voice, Roy snapped back to attention and nodded curtly, moving quickly to Porter's side and grasping Edward's head firmly in his hands, pinning it to the floor. That earned him another ear-splitting scream and it was all the nurses could do to keep Edward's limbs pinned to the floor. Roy wrapped an arm tightly around Edward's chin, trapping it in his elbow and not allowing the boy to move his head anymore. So ensnared, the teen quit struggling, letting out a strangled whimper and staring up at the Colonel with wide, blank eyes. It was as if he didn't see Roy at all.

Porter reached over and held the boy's eyelids wide open while he shined the flashlight in them; first the right, and then the left. Edward whimpered desperately and twisted his arms, trying to jerk away from it, but unable to do it.

"Please, no!" he begged in a broken voice.

Roy did his best to ignore it and looked at Porter for an explanation. The man sighed in a dismayed fashion, hanging his head a bit before he spoke.

"His pupils are completely dilated."

He turned to Alphonse.

"You were right."

"What is it?" Roy asked, looking between the two. "What's wrong with him?"

"He's hallucinating," the doctor replied. "Badly. Alphonse suspected that its Nyte's drug that's responsible and I have to agree with him."

"A hallucinogen?"

"Yup. And if I had to guess, I'd say this is all probably going to get a lot worse before it gets better. I'll have to do more tests, though, to be sure."

Roy didn't say a word. Below him, Edward started thrashing again, still crying wildly.

"Please!" he pleaded. "Please, let me go! Please!"

Porter turned to his nurses.

"Ladies, let's get him back to the bed and restrain him."

Roughed up from Edward's earlier attacks, the four women nodded determinedly.

Edward only sobbed.


	3. Chapter 3

THREE

Doctor Porter scrubbed his face. He'd been staring at the microscope for hours, but it wasn't making a difference. He didn't understand what was going on. The hallucinations. The irrational behavior. It all pointed towards a hallucinogen. But it couldn't be just a hallucinogen. This one was not only affecting the patient's psyche and nervous system, but it was elevating his heart rate and blood pressure to dangerous levels. He was experiencing fevers and cold sweats, vomiting often, and the nurses had reported frequent nosebleeds in the last half an hour. Hallucinogens didn't do this to their victims. And it only seemed to be getting worse as the hours passed.

Why? Why was it getting worse? Porter wanted to bang his head against the table. How in the world could he help this kid if he didn't even know what was causing such a strange effect?

He sat back in his seat and took a deep breath. Maybe when the lab results came in, he'd get some answers.

As if by magic, the door to the lab opened and Marjorie, one of his nurse aides, walked in, a file folder in hand.

"These are the lab results," she said. "They just came in from the guys downstairs."

"What do they say?" Porter said.

Marjorie made a face.

"Inconclusive."

"Dammit!"

Porter threw the file folder on the table.

"What is causing this?" he asked, angrily running a hand through his salt-and-pepper hair, half-tempted to yank it out.

"It doesn't make any sense. He's agitated and hallucinating, but all the other symptoms don't make sense! Hallucinogens don't produce this effect on the body! And the symptoms get worse the more agitated he gets!"

He ruffled his hair.

"We're missing something, Marj. But what?"

She shrugged.

"You got me. Only person who knows is that woman who started this whole mess."

Nyte. That's right. Doctor Porter turned back to his microscope. She had the antidote. But why would an antidote be needed? Normally when it came to hallucinogens, people just waited them out until the effects eventually wore off. Did that mean that the effects of this particular hallucinogen iwouldn't/i wear off? So what if it wasn't a hallucinogen at all, but in fact a kind of poison that mimicked a hallucinogen? That would explain the sweating, vomiting, and high fevers. That was the body's common response to fighting off a poison. But a poison that caused hallucinations as well?

Suddenly the whole situation had become a lot more desperate, and Porter was running out of time.

"Marjorie...I need another blood sample."

The woman raised a blonde eyebrow.

"Why? Do you know what it is?"

"Not exactly. Get me another blood sample and I might be able to tell you."

Majorie nodded and headed out the door.

"I'm on it!" she assured him.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

"Al!"

Alphonse raised his head, scanning the crowd before him for a moment to locate the source of the familiar voice. At his height, it wasn't hard for him to peer over everyone's heads and see the hand waving at him, trying to get his attention.

"Over here!" called the pretty blonde girl attached to the waving appendage.

She had sparkling blue eyes and a warm smile and was clad in a black pleated skirt, hiking boots, and a black jacket under which she wore a cream colored shirt. Alphonse knew her face well. He'd known her since they were very small children, before he'd been a soul encased in armor. Her name was Winry Rockbell and her family farmhouse had only been half a mile away from his before his brother and him and burned it to the ground.

Winry was also the manufacturer and mechanic of Edward's automail limbs. They were her pride and joy, so she said, and whenever Edward broke one, as he was wont to do in the rough lifestyle he and his brother led, he always returned to Winry for repairs. She never spared him a lecture or a wallop to the head from the heavy wrench she seemed to always have on her person when that happened, however.

Despite her somewhat more violent tendencies, Winry was actually a very patient and loving girl. She cared very deeply for the Elrics; had grown up with them as if they were brothers, though Alphonse suspected that, in recent years, her feelings for Edward at least had begun to shift towards something not-so-brotherly. And he also got the feeling that Edward reciprocated with the not-so-sisterly feelings he had for Winry, but since neither of them would admit to anything, Alphonse kept his suspicions to himself.

He made his way through the crowded train station to come to stand at Winry's side while she waited for her baggage to be unloaded. She looked up at him curiously.

"Al, what's going on? Granny came running upstairs after the phone call and told me to pack my bag and get my butt out here to East City as soon as possible. She sounded really worried. Is something wrong with Ed?"

Alphonse grabbed her suitcase before she could get a hand on it and hoisted it easily.

"I'll tell you about it on the way to the hospital."

Winry knew what that meant.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Edward's whole body was arched off the bed as he screamed, his voice squeaking and breaking from all the abuse his vocal cords had been taking in the last few hours. He twisted and pulled at the bindings around his wrists frantically, trying to get away, but to no avail. On either side, two nurses worked anxiously to combat the teen's raging fever with cool, damp cloths, but it seemed to only be agitating him to higher levels of distress. It was as if he didn't even see the women at all, his eyes blank and glassy.

"Excuse me!" came a voice behind Winry, startling her from where she stood frozen in the doorway. A nurse hurried past her, laden with a bowl of water full of ice.

"If you're going to stand there, don't be in the way!" the woman said in a curt, businesslike tone. Winry wasn't sure how to react to all of this hustle-and-bustle. She watched Edward's body writhe and contort against the straps lashing him to the bed, heard his scream, saw him collapse against the mattress, exhausted but still screaming, and she turned away to face Alphonse.

"Oh, Alphonse," she said, putting a hand on his arm. She sensed rather than felt his trembling and looked up at his expressionless face. The iron helmet seemed a bit forlorn to her.

"Come on," she said, taking his arm into hers and steering him away from the door. "Let's go for a walk."

Alphonse didn't fight her; didn't have the strength to, really. He was just so relieved to have her here with him. With Edward incapacitated and in the state that he was, Alphonse had begun to feel very lost. He wanted desperately to help, but didn't know how and always ended up being in the way. It was clear to him that this was no ordinary drug; that it was doing something really horrible to his brother and despite his desires, it was one battle Edward was going to have to fight alone without him.

But Edward didn't seem to be winning. His fever was getting worse and he was vomiting more frequently. Not to mention that his hallucinations only seemed to have gotten more terrifying in the last two hours. And Alphonse had no idea what he was seeing, only knew that they were so frightening that they had his normally even-keeled brother screaming and sobbing hysterically like a madman.

Without Edward to guide him, Alphonse had turned to the one person who might be able to help him; the one person who would give him ungrudging support. Who better than Winry?

Winry, for her part, was doing her best to remain silent as the two of them walked down the halls of the hospital towards the garden courtyard located behind it. They made a strange pair and drew many curious glances, but Winry hardly acknowledged them, so used to Alphonse's strange body that she had no qualms about walking arm and arm with a seven-foot suit of armor.

She wanted to bombard the younger Elric with a million questions. Where was that Nyte woman Alphonse mentioned? Why had she done this to Edward? What was wrong with him? Would he be okay? What were the doctors doing? What about the military? Were they doing anything to catch this madwoman? She refrained from asking them because she knew what the answer would be; knew, too, that Alphonse didn't need that right now. She could sense his distress at his brother's condition, and she was glad he'd called for her. Both of the brothers needed her, and, as always, she was going to be there for them however she could.

After they'd walked a little ways into the courtyard, she looked up at Alphonse.

"Al...how long has he been like this?"

Alphonse hung his head, staring at the ground as he walked.

"A few hours now. It wasn't this bad when it started, but...it keeps getting worse. Doctor Porter sent off a blood sample to have it looked at, but no one knows what the drug is or what it's doing Brother."

"Can't they give him a sedative or something? It seems so cruel to just let him scream like that."

Alphonse shook his head.

"Doctor Porter doesn't want to apply a sedative until he knows what the drug is and what it's doing to Brother's body. Once he knows that, then he says he can tell what kinds of drugs will react with it and how, and he can start treating it. Until then, they're just going to fight the fever as best they can."

Winry nodded, then peered up at the twin orbs serving as Alphonse's eyes.

"How are iyou/i holding up?" she asked him. He looked over at her, as if startled by the question, but then he turned his eyes to the path ahead of them.

"I'm..." he started, but stopped as he struggled to find the right words.

"I'm scared," he finally said. "What if they don't figure out what the drug is and Brother doesn't get any better? What if he doesn't recover from this and is crazy for the rest of his life? What if he...?"

He bit off the rest of that question and Winry turned to look down the path ahead, squinting her eyes, the notion that Edward might not be around too horrible a thought to entertain for long.

"Well, you said that there's an antidote, right?"

"Yeah, but Nyte has it, and we don't know where she is."

"But it's out there. And she can't have gone far. So there's still hope."

"Maybe," Alphonse said. He didn't like the thought of counting on a crazy woman for his brother's salvation.

They walked a little longer in silence when Winry patted Alphonse's arm.

"You need a break," she said.

Alphonse looked at her in shock, completely taken aghast at the idea.

"Brother needs me!" he blurted. "I can't just leave him here!"

"I'll look after him while you're gone," Winry said. "But Al, you need to go and clear your head for awhile. I don't need you screaming on the bed next to him."

Alphonse sighed.

"Alright," he said, and he stepped onto the path that would take him back to the front of the hospital building.

"I'll be back in half an hour."

Winry waved at him until he was out of sight and then headed back into the hospital.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

_Wake up..._

Edward jerked awake. When had he fallen asleep? He couldn't remember. He tried to sit up on the bed, but found he couldn't because of the straps secured around his wrists and ankles, holding him down. Where the hell was he? What was going on?

He heard a noise next to him and looked over. Trisha stood there, looking exactly as he remembered her.

"Mom?" he asked, voice hoarse and rough.

"Hello, sweetheart," she replied gently.

"Mom...what are you doing here?"

"You're sick, sweetie. Someone has to take care of you."

Oh, well that explained a few things. Except these straps. He struggled against them.

"Mom...why am I tied down like this? Is something wrong with me?"

She smiled sweetly, but there was something dark and sinister in her smile.

"Of course not, sweetie. That's just to keep you from hurting us any more."

He stared at her.

"What? What are you talking about? I would never hurt you!"

She was changing, morphing, her form becoming twisted and bent.

"You don't remember, Edward? I'm hurt," she said, her voice becoming garbled and not quite human.

He wanted to look away, but couldn't. He could only watch in horror as her body turned itself inside out and her head twisted around on its spinal column. She stared at him, reaching for him with one of her bent and twisted arms.

"Don't you remember how you left me there like this to die? Please fix me, soon, Edward. It hurts so much..."

He shrank back from her grasping hands as much as he could, but she was getting closer.

"Brother, please fix me," he suddenly heard to his left and he looked over to find Alphonse standing there, whole once again.

"Alphonse!" Edward shouted, straining against the restraints. Alphonse lifted his arms.

"Please, Brother," he said. "Fix me."

All at once, Alphonse began to melt, his skin peeling away from the muscles and bones underneath, and the younger Elric started screaming.

"Help me, Brother!" he screamed. "Help me!"

"_Alphonse!"_

Edward thrashed violently against his restraints. He couldn't help them. He couldn't help them!

"You left us like this, Edward," said his mother.

"No!" he answered. "No, it wasn't like that! I never meant for this to happen! Please!"

"You left us to die, Edward. You hurt us and then you left us there."

Her hands were on his face and neck and he thrashed violently. He didn't want to be touched.

"No! Stay away! _Don't come any closer!"_

"Don't you want a hug from Mommy, sweetheart?"

"_NO!_"

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Winry walking down the hall towards Edward's room when she heard Edward's loud cry followed by what sounded like a clapping noise. She hurried down the hall in time to hear a loud crash echo into the hall.

"Someone stop him!" she heard a woman shout and then the same woman screamed. A crash and a bang later, Edward suddenly vaulted into the hallway, his hair loose and his eyes wild and a thin knife held in his right hand. Four nurses approached him, but he brandished the knife at them and they stopped short. Breathing raggedly, he turned to run down the hall and found Winry standing in his way.

"Edward," she said in a quiet voice.

For a second, his eyes focused and he saw her, but then the wild light came back to his eyes and he backed away from her.

"No!" he half-whimpered.

"Edward," she said more insistently, stepping towards him.

"No! Stay away!"

He pointed the knife at her and she stepped back.

"You're not real," he said sounding desperate and scared. "You're not real!"

"I _am _real, Edward," she replied, putting a hand against her chest. "Don't you recognize me?"

She took another step towards him, but he screamed at her.

"_NO! Stop! Don't come any closer!_"

The nurses tried to jump on him from behind, but he whipped around, slashing at the air with the knife in his hand, keeping them at bay.

"iStay away from me!/i" he screamed, and then he was off, racing on uneven bare feet down the hall and crashing through the window, rolling across the concrete to play out his momentum. Winry rushed to the window in enough time to see him get to his feet and take off into the brush.

"Edward!" she shouted. "Come back!"


End file.
